Highlights

• Thiago Motta's revolutionary 2-7-2 formation has caught the eye of many people across European football.
• Motta's offensive philosophy emphasises control and using numbers to the team's advantage.
• Bologna have secured Champions League football for the first time thanks to Motta's excellent work at the Stadio Renato Dall'Ara.

Football is full of revolutionary minds, and we may be looking at the next to emerge in the coming years in the form of Thiago Motta. The Bologna manager has some radical ideas and could lead the way for more young bosses going forward.

Pep Guardiola is the biggest example of a wonderfully intelligent mind changing the way everyone views the beautiful game, with ideas such as inverted full-backs and tiki-taka football being common staples of the modern game. The Spaniard isn't the only man with revolutionary ideas either, and Motta is the latest young manager who is looking to make his mark in the European game.

His Bologna side have unexpectedly secured Champions League qualification for the 2024-25 campaign after winning 67 points with two fixtures of the season remaining, leaving them joint-third in the table alongside Juventus. Only champions Inter (92) and AC Milan (74) have picked up more points so far. The former Italy international started his journey into management as Paris Saint-Germain's Under-19s boss before having short spells at Genoa and Spezia. The biggest talking point surrounding Motta's approach to the game, though, is his 2-7-2 formation - which tactics expert Statman Dave claimed was "breaking football" in a video posted on YouTube in April.

Thiago Motta's Revolutionary New Formation

The manager looks at the pitch differently to others

The traditional way for football formations to be viewed and discussed is from back to front. Discounting the goalkeepers and starting from the defensive line, we have become accustomed to seeing managers play 4-4-2, 4-3-3 or even 3-4-3 over the years - but never 2-7-2. Firstly, because this setup includes all 11 players in the team.

While on paper this looks like a scenario where the team lines up with no goalkeeper, only two defenders and seven players packed into the midfield, that's not the case. Motta changed his way of looking at the pitch to come to this formation.

Instead of the traditional way of looking at a tactical set-up horizontally, the Brazil-born manager instead split the field into three vertical lanes. This means he effectively has seven players in the central channel with two players out wide on each flank. Check out the following graphics to see how it looks:

Motta Demands Intense, Offensive Football

Italian utilises shape to dominate possession

In an interview with Gazetta della Sport, the manager explained his philosophy by saying: "My idea is to play offensively. A short team that controls the game, high pressure and a lot of movement with and without the ball. I want the player that has the ball to always have three or four solutions and two teammates close by to help."

Going into more detail about the way he views the positions of players on the pitch and formations in general, Motta continued to say:

"I don't like the numbers of the field because they trick you. You can be super offensive with a 5-3-2 and defensive in a 4-3-3. Depending on the quality of the guys. I had a game a while ago where the two full-backs ended up playing as the 9 and 10."

To achieve his desired shape, a traditional 4-3-3 sees the defensive midfielder sometimes position himself in between the two centre-backs. This allows the full-backs to push forward and the wingers interchange with the central midfield players, essentially creating triangles on either side of the pitch to progress the ball up the field.

The involvement of the goalkeeper is intriguing, as it doesn't differ too much from the sweeper-keeper role fans have become used to seeing in the best teams around the globe. Motta believes all players should be a passing option. Therefore, his number one needs to have the ability to receive the ball and pick out appropriate passes to help the team move forward.

The main idea is to give the team the best chance possible to dominate possession by using each player effectively and utilising space to their advantage. This set-up has got Bologna playing brilliantly and the club could be set to qualify for the Champions League for the first time in their history.

GIVEMESPORT Key Statistic: Bologna have the second-highest average possession (57.6%) in Serie A in the 2023-24 campaign, with only Napoli (61.4%) boasting a higher average.

Linked to Liverpool and Man United

Young manager on radar of Europe's top clubs

It's no surprise that some of Europe's biggest clubs are reportedly keeping a close eye on Motta's progress into one of the most exciting young managers around. Liverpool were one of the clubs interested in Motta before they eventually settled for 45-year-old Feyenoord boss Arne Slot, who will replace Jurgen Klopp at Anfield this summer.

Another huge Premier League club said to be keeping a keen eye on the Bologna boss are Manchester United, who are expected to part ways with under-fire manager Erik ten Hag this summer. However, like Xabi Alonso at Bayer Leverkusen, Motta may opt to stay put with Bologna and lead them out in the Champions League next season.